An agitation launched by locals at Brijrajnagar Railway station under South East Central Railway (SECR) Bilaspur division on Tuesday affected operation of several trains in the zone.As per information received, the ‘Rail Roko’ agitation at Brijrajnagar which lasted for over 6 hours resulted in cancellation of several passenger trains passing through SECR division while various Express trains were stopped for several hours.Express trains including Howrah-Ahmadabad Express (12834), Puri-Haridwar Utkal Express (18477), Danapur-Durg South Vihar Express (13288), Howrah-Mumbai Duronto Express (12262), Pune Howrah Duronto (12221), Surat-Malda Express (13426), Santragachi Express (12767), Durg-Danapur...more...

Express (13287), Utkal Express (18478) and Amritsar-Visakhapatnam Hirakund express (18508), were stopped for several hours before their destination, informed Railway officials.Moreover, operation of some passenger trains including Tatanagar-Itwari-Tatanagar (58111/12), Jharsuguda-Bilaspur passenger (58213) and Jharsuguda-Gondia-Jharsuguda passenger (58117/18) were suspended due to the protest, said officials, adding that Shalimar-Bhuj Express originating from Shalimar has been cancelled on January 5.

A portion of the Khokhra railway bridge collapsed on Saturday morning, affecting schedules of as many as 31 trains. A 40-year-old man was injured in the incident which took place around 10 am. The injured was identified as Chiranjiv Vasant More, a resident of Kailashnagar in Hatkeshwar. According witness Jay Shah, a 26-year-old who was riding on the bridge when the incident took place, said that there was a loud noise resembling a blast following which a portion of the 55-year-old bridge collapsed onto the railway line. "I was on my bike. I saw a man walking on the footpath of the bridge.A minute later, there was a loud noise, and I heard the man scream. To my horror, I saw...more...

a portion of the bridge collapse and the man got buried under the debris. I immediately parked my vehicle on the curb and with the help of a few passers-by, rescued the man from the debris." The injured More was rushed to Civil Hospital. PP Pirojia, PI (Railway) said, "An NC complaint has been registered in the case." Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Rahul Agarwal, Municipal Commissioner D Thara, Railway police and Khokhra police rushed to the spot following the bridge collapse. Another witness said that just 10 minutes before the incident, a goods train had passed by.TRAINS SERVICES HITThe Ahmedabad-Mumbai railway services had to be suspended and couple of trains that were due to reach Ahmedabad was halted at Maninagar and Nadiad respectively, said Agarwal. "Passengers waiting at Ahmedabad railway station for Mumbai-bound trains were taken to Maninagar and Nadiad stations," he said. As many as 31 trains had to be diverted or halted due to the collapse, officials said.HARRIED PASSENGERSPassengers at Ahmedabad railway station complained that the officials did not provide them with proper information. Jayshreeben Baldevbhai Raval (55), a homemaker who came to Ahmedabad station to board a train to Ankleshwar, said, "I came from Naroda to board the Intercity to Ankleshwar. I have been waiting for two hours but I have no clue when the train will arrive. The officials at the inquiry window are not responding properly." However, railway officials defended themselves. Western Railway PRO Pradeep Sharma said: "We had informed the passengers about suspension of train services immediately after we received details of the bridge collapse. Helpline 139 and our website were also updated regarding this."DEPARTMENTAL INQUIRYThe bridge which was built in 1960 at a cost of Rs 28 lakh was well-maintained, claim railway officials. Railways is responsible for the maintenance of the bridge structure that lies directly above the railway line. Agarwal insisted that the maintenance works and inspection of the bridge was undertaken regularly. "The bridge was renovated in 2014. Once the inquiry is over, the actual reason behind the collapse will be clear," Agarwal said. According to a witness, 10 minutes before the incident, a goods train had passed by.AMC TO RESURVEY KHOKHRA BRIDGE: THARAAs the railway authorities hurriedly set up an inquiry panel to look into the collapse, AMC has also decided to resurvey the approaches of the bridge which fall under its purview. Thara said, "The main structure of the bridge is safe and strong. But the extended portion that fell was cantilever made of concrete. We will resurvey the approaches to the Khokhra bridge." She also added that the civic body has taken up the restoration of the Kalupur and Asarwa railway bridges. Meanwhile, Railway officials said that the tracks would be cleared of the debris by Saturday night.MORNING HORRORAnis Sheikh, an autodriver who lives in the nearby chawl, had just returned home when he witnessed the bridge collapse. He said, "Everyday, hooch sellers set shop at the spot. It is lucky they were not here when the bridge collapsed."AFFECTED TRAINSSeveral trains were diverted/cancelled/suspended following Saturday's bridge collapse. Diverted Trains: Train No. 16587 Yashwantpur-Bikaner Express was diverted via Vadodara- Godhra-Ratlam-Chanderia-Ajmer, Train No. 18421 Puri -Ajmer was diverted via Anand-Godhra-Ratlam-Chanderia, Train No. 12473 Ahmdabad-Shri Mata Vaishnao Devi Katra Super Fast Express was diverted via Palanpur- Ajmer-Falna-Ringus-Rewari. Short Terminated: Train No 12942 Asansol-Bhavnagar Terminus Parasnath Express was short terminated at Kanij and will remain cancelled between Kanij and Bhavnagar, Train No. 12834 Howrah-Ahmedabad Express was short terminated at Anand and will remain cancelled between Anand and Ahmedabad, Train No, 59441 Mumbai Central- Ahmedabad Passenger was cancelled between Vadodara and Ahmedabad and will reverse as 59442 Ex. Vadodara, Train No. 19060 Jamnagar-Surat Intercity was terminated at Ahmedabad and will remain cancelled between Ahmedabad-Vadodara, Train No. 19059 Surat- Jamnagar Intercity was cancelled between Surat and Ahmedabad, Train No. 12009 Mumbai Central - Ahmedabad was terminated at Nadiad and will reverse as 12010 Ex Nadiad to Mumbai Central, Train No. 19011 Mumbai Central- Ahmedabad Gujarat Express was terminated at Vadodara and will be reversed as 19034 Vadodara- Valsad Gujarat Queen, Train No. 59050 Viramgam-Valsad Passenger was cancelled between Ahmedabad and Vadodara & reversed as 59049 Valsad- Viramgam Passenger Ex Vadodara, Train No. 16614 Coimbatore-Rajkot Express was short terminated at Nadiad and will remain cancelled between Nadiad-Rajkot, Train no. 16613 of 4/10/15 was cancelled between Rajkot-Ahmedabad.Trains regulated at various stations: Train No. 16337 Okha- Ernakulam Express, Train No. 12942 Asansol-Bhavnagar Parasnath Express, Train No 18421 Puri -Ajmer Express, Train No. 12834 Howrah-Ahmedabad Express, Train no. 11087 Veraval-Pune Express, Train No. 19575 Okha-Nathdwara Express, Train No. 11465 Somnath -Jabalpur, Train No. 19018 Jamnagar-Bandra Terminus Saurashtra Janta Express, Train No. 15667 Gandhidham-Kamkhiya Express of, Train No. 16507 Bhagat ki Kothi-Bangalore.You Might Also Like

Three long-distance trains were cancelled and several others diverted or short terminated as rail traffic on Howrah-Mumbai trunk route was disrupted for hours due to a blockade at Bondamunda and Rourkela stations under Chakradharpur Division of South Eastern Railway. An economic blockade was organised by 'Adivasi and Mulavasi Bachao Manch' protesting against the government move to upgrade Rourkela Municipality to a corporation. An SER release in Jamshedpur said the cancelled trains are 12262 Howrah-CSTM Duronto Express tomorrow, 12871 Howrah-Titlagarh Ispat Express scheduled to leave Howrah tomorrow and 18109 Rourkela-Jammu Tawai Link...more...

Express today.

Shops and business establishments were shut in several areas following the blockade call and train services were disrupted as agitators squatted on the tracks. There was, however, little impact on road traffic in the city and nearby areas due to the presence of additional platoons of police. George Tirky, the MLA Biramitrapur who is spearheading the agitation, said the blockade with continue. "We will force the government to drop the plan to give corporation status to Rourkela," he said. Adivasi and Mulabasi Bachao Manch claimed that the government declaration of including nearby Jghatarang and Jagda gram panchayats and Nabakrishnanagar in Rourkela Municipality was illegal as Sundergarh is a scheduled district and therefore the move was against the constitution and should be stopped. Meanwhile, the train diverted included 12810 Howrah-Mumbai Mail, 12834 Howrah-Ahmedabad Express, 12906 Howrah-Porbander Okha Express (diverted via Tata-Chandil-Muri- Barkakana-Garwa Road-Chopan-New Katni- Jabalpur-Itarsi- Jalgaon), 12221 Pune-Howrah Duranto Express (diverted via Sambalpur-Angul-Kapilas Road-Bhadrak-Kharagpu, 18005 Howrah- Koraput Express (diverted via Bhadrak-Kapilas Road-Angul- Sambalpur), 12130 Howrah-Pune Azad Hind Express (diverted via Kharagpur-Bhadrak-Kapilas Road-Angul-Sambalpur-Jharsuguda), 12262 Howrah-Mumbai Duronto Express (diverted via Dangoaposi- Jaroli-Kapilas Road-Angul-Sambalpur-Jharsuguda-Bilaspur), etc. Trains Short Terminated included 18030 Shalimar- Lokmanya Tilak Express (short terminated at Ghatsila), 12871 Howrah-Titlagarh Ispat Express (will return as 12872 from Bisra to Howrah, the release added.